Ash IB: New Omega Omnisphere- New Pokemon Masters
by The Omniarch
Summary: An alternate Ash Infinity/Ash IB story with a more canonical version of XYZ Ash gaining eventual meta-omnipotence and ZOF enhanced Pokemon. Amourshipping soul bonding fic, as well as a soul bond between Ash and Molly Hale. Inspired by the final episode of Pokemon XYZ; not your typical godlike fic guys I promise.
1. Chapter 1

_Author's Notes: Hey peeps, brand new story fresh off the press for you all. This one is an alternate version of my original Ash Infinity/Infinity and Beyond Story. This one is a different version of the character I've created altogether, in a futuristic version of the Omega Omnisphere itself; so, don't be expecting too many crossovers between this story and my other ones since they take place in two completely different Ultra-Verses. My self-insert character might make an appearance at certain points but those cameos will be fleeting at the most I reckon._

 _This story will feature a story line and a version of Ash that starts out almost completely identical to the canon XY and XYZ series Ash; who eventually ends up gaining Zenith Omnidony Metapotence and becoming Ash Ketchum Infinity and Beyond with Serena being his ESIT Soul Mate. This is hugely and solely Amourshipping and only Amourshipping and unlike the other version of Ash Infinity in my other story this one will take place during this Ash IB's origins/origin story. Be aware of the fact that there can only be one Ash Infinity/IB in each version of Totality; he and his legacy are singularities in their respective Double-O's and their only counterparts are literally separated by a beyond endless divide so… Yeah, each Totality can only have one; that doesn't mean there is always going to be one, only in Omega Omnispheres where the concept of championship on the ultimate level is an actual thing and not just an idea._

 _I've tried my absolute best to break down my own thoughts and concepts of my stories, characters, and mechanics in a way that people can understand; but I'm always learning new and better ways to go about doing so. So, if any of you guys have any questions about something you don't fully understand feel free to PM me with inquiries; I'm always open for discussions about my stories… just let me know if I end up talking your ears off because I don't always know when to keep a lid on it lol._

 _So, while this Ash will start off with some of his godlike capabilities unlocked he won't start off being a total expert at using them. This story was inspired by the final episode of Pokemon XYZ that aired today and has rekindled my absolute love for all things Amourshipping; for those wishing to remain unspoiled, I won't say anything more but I doubt anyone who isn't an Amourshipper hasn't seen the many images and memes that have undoubtedly been posted online._

 _The Pokefan community is going batshit guys and for good reason… Amourshipping just became fucking canon today and while I'm not entirely satisfied with the end results of the Kalos League I do admit my faith in the writers was not misplaced in the end; and honestly the Team Flare arc was more important than some stupid championship title in my opinion. My point is that I wouldn't have even gotten the inspiration to start this story without the most recent episode so any of you who end up loving this fic can thank the writers of the canon Pokemon universe._

 _Bear in mind that everything in XY and XYZ in my story is as true to canon as I'm personally comfortable with, and despite the various continuities in the Anime in recent years I'm going to sort of blend them all together including Unova, Sinnoh, Hoenn, Johto, and Kanto. So basically, this Ash will be about 16 years old when the XYZ Kalos arc comes to an end. This is pure Amourshipping guys and despite it featuring an eventual godlike Ash his roster won't consist of an infinite number of Pokemon like some of the other Double-O Champs I've made, and will instead be all his canon captures as well as some extras I've got planned including some of the most godlike legends._

 _Mew, Mewtwo, and even Arceus himself will eventually join Ash on his journey when the ZOF chooses him to introduce the concept of Double-O Championship to HIS version of Totality; just a reminder, this story is not even part of the same Omniverse as my other ones… so this is all its own thing. I might also have him catch a Silvally and the three Alola starters when I get to the Sun and Moon arc of his story. And of course, you can't have Ash without Ash-Greninja, not anymore at least, not in my opinion. Greninja will eventually be rejoining Ash when the same force that gave his trainer his new powers also destroys the evil roots created by Team Flare in their entirety._

 _One more thing before I get this story started; Ash won't just arbitrarily know everything there is to know about his powers and his Pokemon's when this first starts and his ascension to a ZOF prodigy will be a gradual change taking place over the course of several years, making him increasingly more powerful and versatile as his story progresses. Even when the powers and the Zenith Omnidony mentality that goes with it are fully broken in, Ash is still going to be much the same guy Serena fell in love with; albeit with a more mature vocabulary and a beyond endless capacity for romantic love and other human emotions that stem from his new gifts… but the more things change the more they stay the same._

 _He'll still be Ash Ketchum, but now he'll also be Ash Ketchum Infinity and Beyond; in a version of the Double-O where Pokemon Masters of infinite and beyond infinite power are still a completely foreign concept until he comes along. If you guys read all of this and are still on board with this story, then I thank you all my friends and hopefully you enjoy what I have to offer. Without any further delays, here is the story I've been thinking about writing all day long and finally decided to, lol._

 _Disclaimer: I don't own anything, and I don't make any profits off this story whatsoever. I write this purely for fun and the entertainment of my writers._

 _Dedication: To the writers of the Pokemon Anime themselves; thank you for rewarding the faiths of thousands of Amourshippers worldwide. I know none of you will probably ever read any of this but I just wanted to thank you all somehow and writing this story seemed the best way for me to do so, as well as supporting the Pokemon gaming and Anime industries for years more to come by buying all the games and watching all the shows. I'd also like to dedicate this story to my readers, despite my one-of-a-kind godlike fics there are still people out there who appreciate my writing and character style and for that I am forever grateful._

Prologue: Till the Day We Meet Again, I'll Love You Forever My Friend

From the Kanto Region, all the way to Kalos; Ash Ketchum's most constant companions have always been his Pokemon. His ever-present Pikachu had been with him through so much these past six years since his first journey just began and they'd just concluded yet another huge milestone in their ongoing adventure to be the best like no one ever was. He'd come closer to winning the Pokemon League than ever before in Kalos and did his very, very best; placing in the finals was a huge leap forward, onward, and upward for any trainer looking to partake in the Championship League matches with the Elite Four and Regional Champions.

Ash and his Kalos Team had taken Kalos completely by storm, and he and his team members had never been better. Falling short in the League finals was nothing compared to saving the whole world once again from the Megalith and Team Flare's leader. Ash had almost tasted the ultimate victory that day. Alain may have won in the end but Ash had never felt so satisfied with losing to a more powerful opponent before. Not even Tobias had left him with such a positive feeling in his chest after their match which he spectacularly lost, and at least Alain was starting over from zero like Ash himself; in all honesty Ash was seriously looking forward to their rematch.

Greninja and his special power had been absolutely devastating to his opponents, whatever power it was he managed to bring out in the Kalos Water-type had been strong enough to defeat some of the most powerful mega evolved Pokemon and powerful Pokemon period that Ash had ever seen in his entire career.

Greninja's abilities had almost seemed limitless at certain times, and while Ash wasn't one to boast the power of any of his Pokemon he couldn't deny the sheer power the frog-like Pokemon had been hiding within him. Ash had briefly wondered how Greninja would stack up against the likes of Tobias's Darkrai or other such insanely powerful Pokemon. He knew for an absolute fact that against something like Zygarde's strongest form there wasn't really a chance, but then again Ash had encountered only a few legendary Pokemon in his time that could match the sheer power that Squishy had unveiled during the Team Flare crisis; the Mewtwo he met on Mount Quana was definitely a contender as well as a lot of the Legendary Pokemon Hoopa had summoned. Kyogre and Groudon in those more terrifying forms and Black and White Kyurem, not to mention the black Mega Rayquaza were all absurd powerhouses and Ash knew he had only gotten a taste of their full power that day and he and Greninja still had a long way to go before being even half as strong as them.

He also knew it wouldn't be the last time he and Greninja saw each other, and once those stupid roots were dealt with back in Kalos Greninja would likely be joining Ash through the rest of his travels from then on. At this point Greninja had become as integral a member of Ash's team as Pikachu and that was no mean feat; it wasn't just the power he possessed either, it was what it meant whenever they achieved it together. He and Greninja had very special, and very powerful bond; and for the first time in living memory Ash was content to have more than just Pikachu along for the ride wherever he may end up going. The time was also at hand where he'd start taking a more active role in the continued training of all his old Pokemon at Oak's laboratory; because frankly he'd neglected them the chance to fight in both the Unova and Kalos Leagues and enough was enough in his opinion.

A big part of the reason he lost in Unova was because he didn't rotate his Pokemon between old and new like he did back in Sinnoh. Yhat had been the absolute worst Pokemon League loss of his career. It was a serious step down from Sinnoh in all honesty but at least Ash landed on his feet again bigtime when Kalos rolled around. He had wondered a few times how the battle with Alain might have turned out if he had rotated his team a bit more between the ones in Kalos and from regions past.

He had justified it by saying he didn't want to neglect the training of his new Kalos Team and that had been a viable excuse while he'd been fighting gym battles and stuff, but once he hit the League he realized he'd probably no longer be able to hide behind that excuse; yet some prideful part of him wanted to prove he could go all the way in a League with a team caught and trained exclusively in the region he was competing in.

Now though, he was contemplating going back for all the Pokemon he'd ever caught and released or lent to someone else for whatever reason; his old pals Pidgeot, Butterfree, Haunter, Primeape, and a whole sleuth of others were all waiting for him somewhere out there in the wide world, and he wasn't planning on resuming his journey without any of them. He also figured that Charizard was happy in Charicific Valley with the female Charla, but Ash was still adamant about calling on him as often as he could and maybe even obtaining the power of mega evolution for himself and his Pokemon that could do it.

It may not have been the perfect victory he hoped for, but it was one helluva improvement from Unova and his roster was much more balanced and full of natural Kalosian powerhouses. That's not to say his Unovian team wasn't impressive, just a lot of them were young and inexperienced; they had the same potential as any of his other Pokemon but there was no substitute for first-hand experience, he understood that now. Any Pokemon could become unbelievably strong under the right trainer, Ash's Pokemon have proven that time and time again as his own skills continued to marginally increase.

That said, the time had come to take his game to a whole new level; he and Greninja's bond phenomena may have been enough to skate by various mega evolved Pokemon they faced but Ash knew that kind of power could still be put to an awful lot of use. Even though he prided himself on his ability to bring out his Pokemon's power through his own means, he couldn't deny that Mega Evolution increased a Pokemon's natural abilities drastically. It was the literal bond between trainer and Pokemon manifesting within that Pokemon and allowing them to release all their hidden power at once. Pokemon may not have needed mega evolution to unlock that potential, (Lysandre made that pretty clear) but Ash also knew he couldn't knock a new style of battling until he at least gave it a try; and Mega Evolution was brimming with possibilities in his opinion. What was the point of his Kalos Journey if he and his Pokemon didn't bring the best that Kalos had to offer them back with them and along with them in the future?

His Charizard had often lost at first simply because he had refused to listen to Ash, but even Charizard whom had remained one of Ash's strongest Pokemon for a long time… couldn't one-shot Pokemon-League caliber teams like Greninja had done with his and Ash's first opponent in the Kalos League. Reiterating his thoughts from before, Ash realized he may have just found his ace Pokemon in terms of sheer power; though he would never boast of it in that cocky manner that Gary had done for so many years… he refused to stoop that low. But still, it was hard to keep his pride in his own Pokemon in check; and despite Gary's initial rudeness and overconfidence, he did have the skills to back it up at the time.

Ash's pride in Greninja knew no bounds during the final fight with Alain, it may not have been the ultimate victory he had promised his friends but it was enough; he and his Pokemon did everything they could but in the end their best wasn't enough to go all the way. Nevertheless, he was satisfied with the results; and being a Pokemon Master was about more than simply winning some title and a trophy. It took Ash years to realize that losing a Pokemon League wasn't the end of his career, each time he failed gave him room to grow even more; of course, it would be nice to win at least one of those times. And he came closer now than ever before.

He could try to place the credit for his Pokemon's spectacular performance solely on his own improved competency as a trainer; but he also knew his winning streak was more largely because of the company he had during said journey through the latest region. Despite these rationalizations, Ash still had to wonder if all his Pokemon could achieve that same supposedly limitless power Greninja had unveiled; or perhaps it was just Greninja. He honestly wouldn't mind using Mega Evolution since it did require a powerful bond between a trainer and Pokemon, and Pokemon/human relations were Ash's strong suit.

Sitting up alone in his bedroom after arriving home in Pallet Town that night, Ash allowed himself to reflect on all the things he and his friends had been through during his journey through Kalos; Clemont the ingenious inventor and scientist, Bonnie the adorable little sister whom he would've given almost anything to have as a little sister to him back when he was little, and Serena. Ash fought back a blush as Pikachu shifted his position in his bed by Ash's pillow; evidently having none of the troubles his trainer was having falling asleep, but Ash just couldn't help but lie awake in contemplative silent musing. There were no words to describe his feelings towards the honey blonde performer; but ever since she'd kissed him he'd been hesitant and couldn't seem to stop thinking about her.

' _You're my goal Ash. Just you wait, when next we meet; I will have become a much more attractive woman_ ,' Serena had said prior to her departure from them at the airport. Her trip to Hoenn was scheduled before Ash was due to return home himself so they were forced to say their goodbyes to her early. And during the interval that Ash contemplated what her statement could mean he got his answer almost immediately after the fact. As she descended the downward escalator and he managed not to chase after her and stopped at the top; she did a complete 180, asked for one last thing from him, ascended the downward escalator, and landed the most passionate and sweetest kiss on his lips he'd ever thought he could have. It wasn't like Latias or Melody where the kiss had been a short and sweet peck on his cheek; Serena had gone all out, pressing her lips on his and tentatively entering his mouth with her tongue in a sort of open-mouthed kiss that took him completely by surprise and did things to his anatomy that no other girl had been-able-to entice in him before.

Contrary to popular belief, Ash wasn't as oblivious to romance as many of his female companions believed he was; it's just that none of the girls he happened across in his travels could sway his heart. It also didn't help that he never had a father to walk him through the process of romantically entangling himself; he wasn't exactly on expert on the female psyche nor did he profess to be all that good at matters of the human heart. He wasn't dense, he simply just couldn't muster up any feelings for the female companions he'd had over the years. For whatever reason, while he could acknowledge from an objective viewpoint that most of his female companions were extraordinarily attractive for one reason or another; it just didn't do anything for him. Brock had said something one time about him being demisexual or some other term that people nowadays sensationalized.

Since Ash had been unable to feel anything romantically for any of the girls he traveled with, it had never been an impeding factor and his personal happiness was always based on traveling and winning Pokemon battles left, right, and center; even though some part of him felt bad for possibly hurting some of these girls who felt for him when all he felt was friendship or familial ties. He even at times believed ' _getting the girl_ ' might interfere with the process of fulfilling his dream, being a Pokemon Master, winning battles, and even saving the whole world time and time again. Loathe though he was to admit it, a part of him thrived on the end-of-the-world situations he tended to face and the countless legendary encounters he'd had over the years. He'd seen more legendary Pokemon in the last 6 years than most people see in their entire lives, something that had always nagged at the back of his mind but he certainly wasn't about to complain.

Unfortunately, girls and romance had never been overly important in his life before and if Serena never gave him that kiss he would've remained unmoved by any-and-all girls' attempts to entice and seduce him. He wasn't very good at interpreting his own feelings on the matter, but something deeper than gut instincts told him he'd been holding out for Serena all this time. He felt that the reason he could never love anyone else was because Serena was the only girl he knew of that he could truly love; ever since that day he'd rescued her in that forest his fate had been forever sealed and his love locked for all eternity. He didn't have a word to describe the kind of bond they shared, but something about it seemed precious beyond all measure and like he could live off the feelings she distilled within him.

He had been too stunned by the fact that Serena's kiss had managed to invoke such strong feelings in him to give her the response she was probably looking for; he'd never felt a connection like this with anyone before but tonight while he tried to sleep and had too much time to think… he realized with absolutely certainty that he was truly, deeply, madly in love with Serena. And he had probably loved her on a subconscious level for a very, very long time. She had made it damn clear the feeling was mutual to, and yet he watched her walk away with a smile on his face despite every molecule in his body screaming at him to chase after her and accompany her on her journey to Hoenn.

He could've shown her the ropes since he'd been there before, even if it had changed in recent years from the Hoenn Region he remembered; he remembered promising her they'd always be and travel together yet in the end he couldn't live up to that promise. In the end, he ended up going home. And for what, so he could journey to yet another new region and compete in a League with some new companions and new girls?! He felt like he was stuck in a rut and destined to play the same old tune forever; but with Serena everything felt different, new, scary, and thrilling all at once. She was the one he wanted to travel together forever with, he understood that now; that kiss had made everything so _unbelievably clear_. For the first time since he started his entire journey; he had found the one human companion he absolutely refused to let go of… the one person he wanted to take with him for the rest of his life. Some things were worth sacrificing one's dreams for, some people… Ash finally got that now and wished he could've told Serena this at the airport.

All the subtle hints and teases she'd thrown his way, from that adorable Fennekin cosplay to things like the Nurse Joy outfit and that unbelievably attractive Florges costume she sported, and those were just the tip of the iceberg; suddenly became something more than just innocent fun in Ash's mind. Every seemingly interaction between them realigned inside his mindscape to fit this new reality of their situation he'd only just realized. Ash had always enjoyed it when Serena dressed up for some reason, that memory of her in his own clothes were burned in his retinas and would remain seared onto his mind and heart for the rest of his life. She looked better in them than _he_ did for crying out loud, and he was willing to bet she could've dressed up in a paper bag in still look like the most beautiful person on the planet. How she managed to pull off so many different looks with such ridiculous ease was beyond his feeble mortal comprehension; her beauty seemed otherworldly and perfectly symmetrical at times.

To top it all off, she'd obviously been aware of her feelings for Ash for a very long time; and now he finally knew he felt the same way. The level of certainty and clarity he felt on the subject were staggering, he just hoped he wouldn't be too late to give a relationship with her a chance next time they met. He also understood he'd need to talk to his mom about this tomorrow when they were both up, since she had been asleep when he and Pikachu got back home late that same night and wasn't even aware they were home yet.

Ash and Pikachu had simply gone through their usual nightly routines and went straight to his room to sleep. And while he dreaded his mom making embarrassing comments, he knew she'd understand what he was feeling for his best female friend a lot better than he did; just as he knew that Serena was worth any embarrassing comments his mother might have made… she was worth everything to him. Unfortunately, even though he finally knew he loved Serena that didn't mean he knew what to do with those feelings, especially with how painfully intense they had become in such a short of amount of time.

"I'm so sorry Serena… I never saw it until the last moment and now all I can do is pray to Arceus that I'm not too late to fix this," Ash whispered, his heart aching painfully as he fought back the tears that threatened to spill. He couldn't even imagine how frustrated, angry, and disheartened she must have felt; trying absolutely everything she could to let him know not so subtly how she felt only to have him not see her flirtations for what they were. Finally, she was forced to pour her heart out to him completely unbidden at the airport; finally realizing that she wasn't going to get through to him except by being completely, nakedly open about her feelings.

Even Ash couldn't have misinterpreted her feelings when she told him he was her goal, and that she would become more beautiful than ever when next they met; but the real clincher had been that intoxicating kiss. He could still feel the aftereffects of her lips on his; the warmth and softness of them… he couldn't get her out of his head and it was tormenting him beyond reason. He wished he could have been more intuitive with regards to a woman's feelings; and he promised himself that the next time he saw her he'd make damn sure Serena got absolutely everything and anything she deserved from him because she was one-of-a-kind.

" _Pika Pi_ ," his starter suddenly squeaked sleepily, evidently wondering what was on Ash's mind as the Pallet Town trainer smiled sadly. "I'm okay buddy, just thinking about some stuff," Ash whispered back; his expression wistful and his tone subtly laced with guilt. The lightning mouse Pokemon quirked an eyebrow, years of friendship allowing him to follow Ash's thoughts with an unnerving degree of accuracy. Ash nodded almost as though he understood what Pikachu was suspecting.

"Yes, it's about Serena; ever since she kissed me back at the Kalos airport I just haven't been able to stop thinking about her and about my feelings toward her. I don't know why I didn't realize I loved her sooner and now that she's gone to Hoenn I'm worried I'll be too late to do anything about it next time I see her. I just can't help feeling she deserves so much better than a guy who can't even recognize her feelings. I feel horrible Pikachu. I feel like the worst friend in the world and I don't know how I'm going to make it up to her. And the irony is Serena would probably accept my apology right away because that's who she is," Ash said in a surprisingly lengthy description of the feelings that were eating him up inside. Pikachu smiled and patted his shoulder comfortingly.

" _Pikachu Pika Pi, Pikachu Pi_ ," the powerful Electric-type offered his sympathies to Ash's woes, or Ash assumed he was at least. Despite years of friendship between them, there was still a very noticeable language barrier they had to work around to get their point across and Ash was still no closer to translating the actual language of Pokemon now than he was at the start of his very first journey. He may not have completely understood what Pikachu was trying to say, but he got the gist of it, and it made him feel marginally better about his predicament. "Thanks buddy," Ash said gratefully, knowing his best Pokemon friend was probably right and he'd get the chance to make it up to Serena again someday soon; he just hoped when the time came he could finally be the boyfriend and lover he should've been to her when they first reunited. With that thought easing his mind and heart, he finally began to feel his eyelids grow heavy and within moments was out like a light.

XXXXX

 _Ash had often dreamt of fighting in the Pokemon Leagues, fights he managed to win all the way through; straight onto the Elite Four and Champions themselves. Reality vs expectations from back when he was a kid, yet these dreams still resurfaced from time to time. He'd almost completely outgrown that simple desire for fame and fortune beyond measure; to have all the strongest Pokemon in the entire world… yet there was still some part of him that retained that childlike dream… to be the absolute best at all things Pokemon across the entire world and maybe even beyond._

 _His dream self was standing in a stadium as he always was, and he observed himself fighting in what appeared to be some colossal tree of some kind in an unknown region; like a Battle Tree or something. He could somehow tell who his dream self was and like dreams often did he was having an out-of-body experience while his body did the fighting, allowing him to observe the battle from a third-person perspective. His opponent was shrouded by robes of jet black, with a hooded cloak obscuring his face from view and a pair of horrifying, glowing red eyes gleaming from behind the hood like two laser beams._

 _Ash shuddered involuntarily, and would've done more than that if his dream self's state didn't discombobulate him. Dream Ash was dressed in a one-piece suit with a plated chest and a pullover mask covering everything above his mouth. Two holes in the pullover mask above his mouth allowed his multicolored eyes to light up the world like flashes of lightning. His suit was an incandescent white with a metallic gold mini cape… giving him the look of a superhero. Most strangely of all however, was the Alpha symbol on the plated chest of his suit in the same endless colors as his eyes. Ash wondered to himself what it meant as his dream self and the cloaked figure on the other side stared each other down._

" _You hold the legacy of one of the greatest Pokemon Champions in this or any other Omega Omnisphere child. Do you truly believe you can live up to everything that is expected of you now? IBZOF Master or not, you're infinite megaparsecs away from being worthy of the title; especially considering the other Ash Infinities far surpass you in every respect. I will make your entire meta-omnipotent existence a living hell, and I will devote my entire being to ensuring you never establish a Double-O Championship pantheon here! Our enmity will be the stuff of legends, and your insult to the memory of Ash Infinity and his Inverse Counterpart will not go unpunished. Even if you're unworthy to claim your IB title; I will destroy everything you are, will be, and stand for. There will be a reckoning, I promise you Ash Ketchum IB… that you will die," the figure in black spoke with such chilling hatred, malevolence, and sadism that Ash felt his entire dream world grow cold, still, and silent in response._

 _Ash wondered frantically what the hell was going on, having never had a dream like this before and not understanding much of any of it; this was beginning to feel like a horrible nightmare now. He was brought out of his confused state a little when his dream-self replied in a voice like and very unlike Ash's own at the same time. Something in that voice carried a note, a symphony of every kind of power imaginable and unimaginable alike; a godlike voice that sounded completely foreign coming from Ash's mouth yet he couldn't deny it was still him. That essential Ash-ness was still there in abundance, yet something was clearly very different about this dream version of himself; only a fool would deny it._

" _I hold the legacy of Ash IB now; whether I'm a sprout compared to the other Ash Infinities or not is no longer relavant. I will fulfill my destiny as this Totality's greatest and first Double-O Champion, and you my antithesis… shall be vanquished in due time. Now, we end this pointless war between us; go on Raichu," Ash's dream self said, his last words making Ash's jaw drop and convincing him once and for all that this Ash was not him. Because there was no way in hell Pikachu would consent to evolving into a Raichu. 'Unless the Raichu he evolved into was completely different, holy man,' Ash exclaimed emphatically in his own mind as a very different sort of Raichu floated onto the battlefield in a legendary display of psychic power. He appeared to be surfing on some sort of board comprised entirely of electrical and psychic energy mixed together; and the lightning bolts streaking around and all over his entire body were the same colors as dream Ash's Alpha symbol._

" _RAICHUUUUUUUUU!" the lightning mouse shrieked, his very presence causing an ionic discharge throughout every molecule across the entire massive tree both combating trainers were fighting in. The ungodly powers that Raichu literally radiated felt so incredibly real to Ash that he wondered if this was a normal dream/nightmare anymore; but all he could do was watch as the hooded figure waved his white-as-death hand and a creature appeared on the stadium that wasn't there a split-second before. Ash was terrified for his dream self's chances when none other than a Mewtwo was somehow brought to life by this hooded figure and made to fight against dream Ash for him. Even worse was that this Mewtwo looked different, bigger, and like the ultimate physical powerhouse compared to the two he knew; with a different special form than the one he encountered on the Decolore Islands. It gave off a shadowy, malevolent aura and Ash had a feeling it couldn't be reasoned with and wouldn't hesitate to attack or kill humans and Pokemon alike._

 _Ash's astonishment started to outweigh his palpable terror when dream Ash scoffed nonchalantly, and gave an order that left him totally confused. "Use Nasty Plot Raichu IB, enhance the ZOF in your system and use it to clinch this match; become the ZOF prodigy I know you can be and ride that electrifying surf of yours to absolute victory." And Raichu did exactly that, whizzing through the air at truly astonishing speeds towards the shadowy Mewtwo, moving so fast he created afterimages of himself without even having to use Double Team. The afterimages provided the cover needed for Raichu to spam Nasty Plots… the red down covering his bodies to indicate a ceaseless special power boost._

 _As he finished carrying out the command, he shot off like a rocket… tucking his body into a ball comprised of some sort of chaos energy like that video game character Sonic the Shaymin and shooting towards the Shadow Mewtwo so fast that it broke every speed barrier in existence and achieved the logically impossible. Ash was only able to follow his movements because this was his dream. The living orb of pure, devastating power and energy catapulted straight into the enemy Pokemon like an asteroid hitting a planet, and Ash's entire dreamscape was whited out by the resulting supernova worthy explosion…_

XXXXX

Ash's eyes shot open as he sat up abruptly in his bed, startling Pikachu who fell off the bed with a surprised yelp. He was just about to squeak in protest and maybe shock his trainer when something else happened. Ash jumped out of bed with wide frantic eyes searching to and fro, his danger senses on the highest alert they'd ever been as the biggest boom of thunder he'd ever heard clapped in the sky above Pallet Town. The entire house was shaken at its very foundations as Ash went to check up on his mom out of worry, finding her already standing in the hallway as the house continued to quake perpetually.

"Honey, you came home; why didn't you wake me up to let me know, and are you okay," Delia asked him worryingly as Ash nodded. "Yeah I'm okay, and I didn't want to wake you since you were probably fast asleep," he shouted over the constant rattling of the house, the claps of earth rattling thunder resounding in a constant mantra. The lights flickered on and off through the entire house of their own accord, and the TV suddenly turned on as some sort of new channel was recording the very series of events that was happening across Pallet Town right now. Ash and his mother made their way down to the living room to see what was going on. Pikachu followed them with all due haste, his ears perked upwards and his entire body tense as the suddenness of the storm or whatever it was caused havoc to his beyond human attunement with nature.

The news lady was documenting from Virdion City, meaning it was indeed a very large storm. "Ladies and gentlemen, we could be looking at the biggest storm the world has ever known this night; it came from out of nowhere and is already over ten thousand miles in diameter and spreading across the entire globe. Oddly enough though, there is no wind or rain; just earth shaking thunder and lightning… neither of which are causing any collateral damage though science says that they should. The lightning bolts are also not just blue; but white, red, green, and a blend of every other color in the entire visible spectrum. I'm sure many people are looking for answers and explanations but right now there simply aren't any to go by. No casualties of any kind have been reported thus far, but for the time being however people across the entire Kanto, Johto, and Hoenn regions are advised to stay indoors for now. I will keep you all posted as best I can… even if I have to risk my own life I'll make sure to always deliver the current news here in Viridion city," the news lady explained the situation as Ash, Delia, and Pikachu all stared at the TV screen with wide, horrified eyes.

"I don't understand… _what's happening_?" Delia demanded frantically while Ash shrugged, the dream he had before this insanity started coming back to him as he wondered if the two seemingly separate things were related somehow. The multicolored lightning illuminating their entire house every five seconds was just a little too close to the lightning that strange Raichu gave off in his dreams; something was horribly amiss about this entire situation and as worried as he was for them all he could do was pray none of his friends were out in this storm. Especially Serena, because if the storm stretched as far out as Hoenn in such a small amount of time then maybe no one was safe. But what was the deal with it not causing any damage, how could something as loud and as earth shaking as this storm not shake the entire world apart; it just didn't make any kind of sense, logical or otherwise.

"This just in… apparently, the storm is spreading faster than even the likes of legendary Pokemon like Lugia are supposedly capable of bringing about. The recommended curfew has also just been extended to include Sinnoh and much of Unova; at the rate this storm is going… the entire world will be blanketed in just a few short minutes," the news lady announced as Ash and Pikachu exchanged a worried glance. This was very eerily like that time on Shamouti Island… but Lugia was among the best storm bringers in the entire world of legendary Pokemon… so if one of his kind wasn't responsible then who or what was?

The news was about to say more when the power suddenly shut off in the Ketchum residence entirely, the eerie multicolored lightning their only solace from the blacker than black, planet-wide storm cloud looming ominously above them. There wasn't even any rain, just lightning and unbelievably loud thunder. Pikachu's cheeks were sparking continuously in response to the immense static electricity in the air; and Ash and his mother's hair was frizzly and all over the place as well.

"How could something like this just happen, and so quickly to? You don't think this could be it do you mom? A lot of people predict the end of the world and Arceus knows I've managed to save our planet time and time again… but with how quickly this storm is brewing and no known cause I'm just not sure if I can do anything this time," Ash admitted, scared out of his wits even while he did his best not to show it. His mom sighed and shook her head.

"Ash, if there is one thing I've learned about you it's that you can do anything… but I think if a storm this size was going to end the world it would have done it by now. For the most part it's just a lot of flashes and noise… there haven't even been any reports of casualties and the news people would be all over that," his mom explained, sounding like she was reassuring herself as much as Ash. Ash kept thinking about Serena, and if she had found shelter already or not. He hated to think she could have been camping in the woods or something while this was going down; knowing how much camping out had grown on her recently and worried she was out there with no way of defending herself.

Ash didn't often pray to a higher power for miracles, and even though Arceus was supposedly the creator of the entire universe; the fact he was a Pokemon to meant even deities in Pokemon form were still Pokemon. For the first time, Ash made a silent prayer to any higher power or gods that might have been listening; not for himself or even his own mother… somehow the thought that Serena might be out in the storm was pushing out thoughts of all the other people in his life. She and her safety were all that mattered to him in these moments, and while that was kind of selfish on her behalf he couldn't help feeling that way.

He was interrupted as the brightest flash of multicolored lightning yet burst through the entire town and the entire storm-ridden sky was lit up with a boundless brilliance; the type that might have given many people seizures. Ash had precisely one second to note the massive wave of the electricity heading their way before the windows shattered, the doors blew off their hinges, and an eternally foreign song no sentient mind had a frame of reference for… became the only thing he was aware of as his whole world faded away and he was enveloped in a beyond-eternal vortex of unfathomable power and energy. He and Pikachu looked all around them in a frantic search for Delia or anyone who had been in Pallet Town a second before; but the town itself was gone as well.

Everything was literally just gone in the blink of an eye. Only the vortex remained, and so would it always be even beyond the final collapse of the final reality itself; beyond eternity, omnipotence, and omniscience themselves… beyond omnipresence and greater than all life and death. As the power worked its way into Ash and Pikachu's system they were suddenly and inexplicably ripped from their mortal existences forever more; becoming one with a collective consciousness that had awareness and knowledge beyond their otherwise maximum limits… which were infinite. He saw eternity itself and he comprehended it perfectly, could bend, remold, reshape, and redefine it on a scale that was unknown to even members of the Omnipotence Nexus.

He saw the endless rebirth of the ultimate reality known as the Omega Omnisphere, the fundamental laws of all of them, how to divide by zero, how to break logic and infinity without breaking reality in the process, he saw the Realm of Absurdities and all its maddening impossibilities, the irrationality that trampled reason completely underfoot. He saw the ZOF, the ON, and even the Emotional Spectrum of Infinite Totalities in their Omni-Omniversal entireties, and it was all too much; it hurt more than the sum total of all the pain in all the Double-O's, and gave him more pleasure than that sum total at the same time.

The most wonderful and terrifying thing of all that he saw however, was the bond he and Serena would now share from this point on; the unbreakable symbiotic relations that only Zenith Omnidonae could experience in full… a soul bond to end all soul bonds that would endure any hardship, survive every test of time, and transcend the rebirth of the Omega Omnisphere itself time and time again. He could see how bonded they would be now and forever in the light of both the ZOF and the ESIT alike, and he could see one other who he would somehow bond closer to than he did with Serena. Too insane now and driven mad by the sights to scream in terror anymore, Ash and Pikachu did the only thing they could do; they both passed out as the shock of their situation became too much to handle and the vortex of the Zenith Omnidonae Force welcomed them into its loving embrace forever more… well, even longer technically but that was splitting hairs…

 _Author's Notes: And that's it for now folks, this is the prologue of a story I've only just recently come up with the premise for and while I want to write more this is a good start to this series and I want to try and start making these chapters shorter and more concise. The next chapter will be the aftermath of the explosion that put Ash in a coma in the physical world, as well as what else the storm did; it'll also feature some much anticipated cameos I'm sure all of you will enjoy. Be sure to leave a review you guys and let me know how I did; and remember, this is only the beginning._

 _Omniarch/Omniarch-1024 is signing off now. Hopefully some of you enjoyed this, and I know it is fast paced compared to some of my other stories but maybe that's a good thing. Shit will start picking up much more steadily in this story than in some of my others, and with the ZOF being a key element here you can expect some pretty absurd changes to befall the world of Pokemon. I've gotta say it's nice working with a godlike version of Ash who is still pretty close to the canonical version; just know that all he saw in the ZOF won't stay with him when he wakes up… at least not right away. His powers will also not fully set in right away, instead they will slowly self-manifest over a period of a couple of years; going all the way into the Sun and Moon arc of this story. Just remember, I'll have to actually play Pokemon Sun and Moon properly before that particular story arc can be done properly, but not to worry lads and lasses I've already got them pre-ordered. I honestly can't even tell you how hyped I am for those games, and how amazed and overjoyed I was with the final episode of XYZ. Let's just say it rekindled my love for all things Amourshipping big time._


	2. Chapter 2

_Author's Notes: Hiya peeps, Omniarch is here once more with a brand-new chapter of New Ash IB for all of you to enjoy. Last time, we left Ash just as he was struck by multicolored lightning and enveloped in a vortex of unfathomable power. Now we're joined by some other familiar faces you all might have been looking forward to seeing. And so, the story unfolds, unveiling the beginning of a legacy; one which only Ash Infinity or one of his extra-omniversal counterparts are capable of upholding._

 _Disclaimer: As always, I don't own anything, nor do I make any profit off this whatsoever. If I owned Pokemon, I'd probably make them every bit as overpowered as they were in the first three movies before the creators nerfed them so as not to terrify the younger viewers._

Chapter One: Some Changes Are Forever

Delia could hardly contain her relief as her unconscious son and Pikachu were loaded onto the stretcher and carted away onto the ambulance. It had taken less than half-an-hour for the paramedics to arrive and while Delia was worried beyond belief she couldn't deny her son would be in good hands. As the pride of Pallet Town was driven away and Delia decided to follow them in her car; she thought back to what had taken place less than an hour before and how freaked out she had been.

Her mind was still trying to process the enormity of what had taken place, the way that lightning storm had almost seemed drawn to Ash; like he was a magnet or something pulling the entirety of the storm towards him. Looking up at the sky above her for a second while pulling out of her driveway, Delia noticed the storm was considerably less violent now that it sent Ash to the hospital; and some absurd notion entered her mind that it had accomplished a large bulk of what it set out to do.

She didn't understand what was happening, but Ash seemed to be the only person in the entire world who was affected by the storm in such a way; even as she listened to the radio nonstop the whole way to Viridian City, Delia wasn't getting word of any other casualties thus far. A few scrapes and electrical burns here and there, and spookily enough, a few people and Pokemon gone missing; but other than that, the storm hadn't taken any lives. All she knew was something big was happening, and as usual, the universe saw fit to make her precious boy the center of it all. She knew she couldn't stop him from doing the things he needed to do; but why did it have to be like this? Why did her beautiful boy have to be at the epicenter of all these cataclysmic events involving legendary and mythical Pokemon? Was there some universal role he was born to fulfill that she wasn't told about?! It just wasn't fair!

"Hold on Ash, I'll be right behind you." She promised as she floored it and broke the speed limit by about thirty miles per hour. The distance between her and the ambulance in front of her grew smaller, but only by a tiny margin. She could just barely make out the sirens flaring in the distance, and it became clear these people weren't exactly messing around. She screamed as a blinding flash of kaleidoscopic lights exploded into being all around her; whiting her car and everything within the vicinity out as she slammed the brakes.

It took several moments for her vision to clear and the fireworks display of crackling energy to recede enough for her cleared vision to be of any help; but when she did see what was going on she wished that last lightning blast had rendered her blind. A wave of the same energy that hit Ash was washing over Oak's laboratory ranch, where all of Ash's Pokemon and many others made their home. Delia felt torn between being there for her son or checking in on the Professor and Tracey to make sure they were handling the chaos at the lab well enough. She found herself pondering what Ash would have done in her situation and could've sworn she heard a little voice in her head telling her that her son was in good hands with the doctors and she could be of more use here.

Of course, Ash would always have put others before himself; how she had raised such a selfless young man was beyond even her. That wasn't to say she was a bad mother, merely that she had raised an exemplary young man that surpassed her loftiest expectations; even if he was still a little dense when it came to girls. She hoped his latest female companion might have changed that; because Serena seemed like such a little sweetheart.

Her mind made up, Delia decided to go and check on the Professor and his assistant and make sure they were okay; deciding that was the Ash thing to do. Daisy Oak was a friend of the family, and one of the best doctors of both human and Pokemon patients in the world today; Ash was in good hands, and Arceus knows he'd have a beautiful woman waiting to examine him when he woke up. Maybe Daisy was the ticket Delia was looking for; at this point she'd pair her son with almost anyone, she was starting to think she might never have grandchildren and she was getting quite desperate for her beautiful boy to find a girlfriend. "Oh Ash, whatever's happening to you right now; I really hope you're okay." Delia silently whispered before turning right down the opposite dirt road the ambulance took and driving up the hill towards Oak's lab.

XXXXX

"Oh my God, what happened to him?!" Daisy demanded a little more panic-stricken than she'd intended as none other than Ash Ketchum himself was being carted along into her wing by the paramedics. She couldn't believe he was here, least of all the first patient she was required to treat due to the strange events of tonight. "He was hit by one of those rainbow lightning bolts." The paramedic answered her as an emergency response team took over from there and wheeled him alongside Daisy who continued grilling her fellow employee.

"What?! How is he still alive?!" She questioned in exclamation; having heard the stories of her old neighbor and dear friend and seen him survive against insurmountable odds, but you'd have to be superhuman to survive direct contact with a lightning bolt like that. When the paramedic shrugged at her, she did her best to maintain her professional composure; having been paid overtime when she stayed well past her shift. She wanted to be there to help in case the lightning storm caused any inexplicable harm like what she thought it might. Now here was the first such victim, and it was her childhood friend from way back in the day. Her gut instincts about the storm had proven accurate after all; and she was the only doctor in this hospital with experience at dealing with inexplicable patients of various kinds.

She was an expert on all known Pokemon physiologies as well as human, and she was the world's leading experts on human and Pokemon biochemistry. This made her the best possible chance Ash had right now; and no matter what was happening to him on a physiological level right now; she was confident she had the know how to ensure he had a future. The only thing that worried her, was the thought that this storm was not any sort of earth lightning; and as she prepared to do what she could to rouse the man from his slumber… the thought of this storm's potentially extra-dimensional origins lingered at the back of her mind and refused to leave.

XXXXX

Another flash of rainbow lightning burned the skies up like the world's largest set of fireworks, and in the Hoenn Region; things were not nearly as settled as they were in Kanto. Serena was glad she got indoors to the nearest Pokemon Center before the worst of the storm hit; but that didn't make this situation any less worrisome or unnerving. She watched in equal parts fascination and unease as the skies lit up in a never-ending display of colors; like the Aurora Borealis, times infinite the brightness and number of colors. All and all though, it just seemed to be a whole lot of noise and blinding luminosity; so, she tried not to let it worry her while she considered the events of yesterday and her journey in Kalos.

The ending of her and Ash's journey together had been bittersweet; because while she was proud of herself for working up the courage to finally kiss him, she regretted not doing so sooner or more often. All the countless opportunities she had to make her true feelings known, and she was too much of a coward to risk her friendship with Ash for something she desperately wanted. She'd been so afraid of rejection and wrecking what they had she hadn't realized she wasn't happy with what they had and love was worth the risk of losing their friendship. It was a clichéd scenario plain and simple, yet it had been the gist of her love life for most of her Kalos journey. She'd always had issues with self-confidence, and now that was coming back to haunt her here in the Hoenn Region.

' _I'm so sorry Ash… if only I'd said something sooner_.' She mournfully mused. A part of her hoped beyond hope that he'd chase her all the way to Hoenn after realizing he'd loved her all along; that they would continue to travel together in Hoenn and he would fulfill the promise he probably forgot he made to her back during the Reflection Cave incident. She realized now that a lot of her silly fantasies regarding her and Ash were just that, that she'd been hoping in vain that he'd somehow recognize her feelings for what they truly were. More than anything, she regretted not having the guts to kiss him sooner; and for the first time, she wondered if he was her dream after all.

She set out on her journey because of him, found her love for Tripokalons because she chose to go out on her journey with him, and just basically did everything she did out of lifelong devotion to her childhood sweetheart. The fact that so much of her life revolved around one person might have come off as sad and pathetic in the eyes of others; but Ash was the first person who showed her such genuine kindness as a child, he was the first and only true friend she'd had for the longest time. Everything she was and had now, she owed it all to him and his incredible ability to lift her up when she was feeling down; his speech about nothing in life being pointless if you learned something from it, had been possibly more inspiring than his infamous catchphrase. She owed him everything, and he was everything to her; so why had she ever tried to let him go? She might have been strong enough to stand on her own now thanks to him, but that didn't mean she didn't want and need him in her new, independent life.

It took her all this time to realize that he was her end goal and her dream; everything she did, from starting her journey to becoming a top tier Pokemon performer, spawned from a desire on her end to become a woman attractive and charming enough for him to fall in love with… to want to spend the rest of his life with. In the end, all she ever really wanted at her core was to be worthy of him; and kissing him following her parting statement to him was enough to confirm that in her mind once and for all.

Another flash of lightning interrupted her train of thoughts as the entire Pokemon Center of Petalburg City rattled in response. "Whoa, that one was definitely closer eh." A voice said from the chair occupied by the man sitting across from her in the PC's guest room. She hadn't taken notice of him until that very moment, since he had been caught up in reading a book titled ' _Pokemon Legends and Myths of the World_ ' by Professor Spencer Hale. Serena hadn't paid him any mind until he made that statement; but when she got her first look at him she had to refrain from quirking an eyebrow at his odd choice in attire.

She supposed he looked decent, okay scratch that, the man was gorgeous; with highly feminine features including his cheek bones, his facial structure, and the smoothness and grace of his physique. But his good looks were all but marred by the fez on his caramel head of hair with highlights of every color under the sun; the pink and purple polka dotted bowtie attached to a Squirtleneck sweater which was five sizes too big for him, and the torn leather jacket he sported that looked like it had recently suffered a massive road burn. All of this was compounded by the maddening, shit eating expression on the man's face.

What caught her off balance most of all however, was his eyes; not the color of them, which were as blue as a legendary Reshiram's Blue Flare, but rather the odd, almost inhuman emotional intensity in them. Despite the maddening grin, his eyes told the story of a man with endless empathic capabilities. It made her want to confide in him all her woes and listen to whatever sage advice he had to give her.

"Yeah, something about it seems unnerving." She found herself responding to his earlier statement before she could stop herself, despite every molecule of her being shouting at her not to initiate a conversation with the obvious crazy person. To her surprise, his answering statement was surprisingly insightful. "Most paradigm shifts often are miss. And that's what this is shaping up to be me thinks. I've seen many remarkable things during my journey, but this is a first; and given my um… encyclopedic knowledge of all things Pokemon, I can honestly tell you this is the first time something like this has happened in recent history. At the very least, I can honestly say no documentations have been made regarding phenomena like this for the last five thousand years-worth of publications." He told her off-handedly.

"How could you possibly know that?" She skeptically inquired, and he smirked at her. "I couldn't." he responded simply, perfectly poker-faced and making her laugh out loud despite her earlier melancholy mood. "Thanks for that." She finally said with a giggle, and his smile turned genuine. "No problem, you looked like you had something heavy weighing on your mind so I thought I could help; even if only a little bit." He admitted sheepishly with sincerity. Serena found herself starting to like this mystery man a little more. For all his oddities, it seemed his heart was mostly in the right place.

"Well, it certainly did help; so, thanks again." She reiterated kindly with a close-eyed smile. She heard him chuckle as he shifted his position in his seat, the lightning overhead fading away to background noise and visual as she found her eyes drawn to the Mega Ring on his left wrist and something different altogether with a strange looking crystal strapped to his right one. "You're a Mega Evolution trainer." She remarked suddenly, as he noticed her eyeing the bracelets on each of his arms.

"Yeah." He replied simply, tilting his head while looking at her like a curious Mew. "That's amazing." Serena said back, not wanting to dig too deeply into the man's past or get in his business but genuinely curious about which Pokemon he had that could mega evolve. "You want to know which Pokemon I have that can mega evolve, correct." He spoke her thoughts aloud so close to verbatim that she nearly jolted with shock. "No, I can't read minds. That's just the obvious question; also, you get pretty good at reading the surface thoughts of other people by studying their eyes." He flippantly remarked, somehow knowing she was just about to wonder if he could read minds.

"Wow, that's… a useful technique." She admitted once she finally got over her shock. She had already forgotten to ask him which Pokemon he had and opted to simply move on from the subject. The man shrugged airily, the smile on his face never once wavering as she wondered how anyone could be so palpably content all the time. The silence between them stretched on for a few more minutes as he went back to reading his book and she resumed looking out the PC's guest room windows, the lightning storm never wavering.

"It's actually kind of pretty; like the world's biggest fireworks show." She remarked, finally breaking the silence as the man looked up at her from his book. "If you ask me, it's rather an eyesore. I've been trying to give up my own longtime obsession with kaleidoscopic colors in recent years." He responded in a monotone voice. "And failing quite miserably to, if the highlights in your hair are anything to go by." Serena rebutted with a teasing grin of her own in place. This made the man chuckle, the mirth he displayed making her feel genuinely warm inside at the thought of Ash making such a noise in response to some of her coyer quips.

"Ah well, old habits die hard they say." He retorted with a playful pout that had her in stitches before he grew more serious in a split-second display of borderline split personalities. "So, this may come across as a total breach of privacy, and you're more than welcome to tell me to sod off and mind my own business. But may I ask what was on your mind a moment before I made my first statement earlier? You don't have to answer, but maybe there's the slightest chance I can help and I'd like to if I could." He requested of her politely, silently offering her a listening ear and some free advice for the taking if she should need it.

Normally, Serena would have hesitated to confide in a near stranger or go to them for advice on anything; least of all her love life, but this man had been nothing but friendly towards her so far, and how much could it hurt her really? Arceus knows just having to keep her real feelings bottled up inside for so long as she did hurt a helluva lot more than any painful words anybody could have said to her.

"It's nothing, I mean… I came here to Hoenn for a fresh start after parting ways with a very dear friend to me. The only problem is, he was so much more than just a friend, and I… I love him." Serena paused for a split second, too choked up by the feelings those three simple words stirred up inside of her like a violent vortex of emotional energy. She was beginning to feel an awful lot like the storm outside, churning and full of too much unfathomable energy to know what to do with the big things she was feeling; it made her heart ache with sympathy towards it despite the fact it couldn't have been alive. "Anyways, I kissed him just before we parted ways; and I spent much of our journey being too afraid to be direct about my feelings but throwing subtle hints his way to see how he reacted to them." She added before taking a deep breath, having expended her remaining air by saying that sentence in one breath.

"And naturally, you were afraid of rejection and of screwing up your already preexisting friendship on the off chance that he might feel something romantically for you in return; despite his apparent lack of reaction towards said subtle hints you directed at him time and time again. This inevitably, leads to endless frustration and unresolved romantic feelings on your part; which likely culminated in the explosion towards the end, what with you kissing him and all. Is that about the gist of it, or did I read into it all wrong?" He summed up her entire love life with Ash all in one fell swoop. His ability to grasp the gist of the situation with such depth and with so little information provided on her end, as well as his ability to interpret her feelings on the matter; threw her for a loop.

"Man, you really weren't kidding about that whole being able to read people thing; were you?" She finally grinned, feeling impressed by his insightfulness despite herself. Evidently, her first impression of him being an odd Ducklett was spot on, but there was a hidden depth to the man that few she'd known could hope to match. Ash was one such person, but whoever this guy was he had Ash beat in the 'interpreting a woman's feelings' category. She loved Ash to the ends of the earth and beyond; but bless his soul, he was seriously dense about matters of the heart.

"What can I say? It's a gift." The man declared with a mock-sheepish grin. Serena was just about to say something else when another blinding flash of lightning exploded into being outside the PC and caused the entire building's lights to flicker on and off; causing her to nearly scream with a start. "Whoa, that one was even closer than all the others. Storm's heading our way I reckon, or maybe it's being drawn here." The man said in an oddly cryptic tone that Serena shuddering involuntarily.

"What do you mean?" She asked him, her voice barely above a whisper as he turned to lock gazes with her. "I merely mean to say that with all the global catastrophes that have occurred over the last six years; we need to be prepared to expect to unexpected, to open our minds to any potentiality. It's not enough to merely put our fates in the hands of a single entity or 'Chosen One' as it were; we all need to do our part to help protect our planet, however small that part happens to be, we all have our contributions. Whatever omnipotent forces are at work in this world, they aren't here to solve all our problems for us; so maybe it's time we started taking the initiative ourselves." He replied lengthily. Serena hung on his every word; fascinated by his passionate speech but remembering that this wasn't what they had been originally discussing.

"Indeed, I seem to have gotten off track, haven't I? You wished to ask me for relationship device correct?" He once again displayed his uncanny ability to follow her thoughts. "So, what can you tell me wise guy?" Serena teasingly asked him, and he grinned at her in turn. "All I can say is… love is stronger than anything; you can never give up hope Serena. Never give up on Ash or the idea that it can work between you two until the bitter end." The man declared with the same passionate zeal she'd come to expect from Ash. Her eyes widened at the usage of her and Ash's childhood catchphrase. ' _It has to be a coincidence_.' She insisted, and the man himself seemed to be oblivious to the fact that he'd caught her so off balance with his words of wisdom. Something else he said caused her to frown in confusion though, and she made this confusion clear with her next query.

"Um, I don't think I ever introduced myself or mentioned Ash by name to you sir." She said with a hint of suspicion, surprised when he quirked an eyebrow and gave her a friendly smirk. "No, I suppose you didn't did you?" He said mysteriously. Serena was just about to demand an explanation when the entire PC went dark after the biggest lightning bolt yet struck down from the heavens above; the resultant shockwave causing the entire building to tremble as though a level 12 earthquake was preparing to shake everything apart.

Serena screamed as the windows all around the building shattered and a wave of energy washed over all of them before anyone could even blink. In that split-second Serena felt the most supremely infinite power rushing through her and invigorating her like she'd never been before; her life flashing before her eyes and visions of insane and impossible, wonderful things bombarding her mental eye. In that one instant, her third eye was opened and became beyond infinitely all seeing; she was one with everything and everyone in every Omega Omnisphere, a reality she never even dreamed was possible before now. The lives of all her extra-omniversal counterparts and all their experiences instantly became her own.

She inherited a bible's worth of legacies, knowledge, and memories from every Serena Infinity in every alternate Omega Omnisphere; as well as every Serena 9BI, and oddly enough a girl by the name of Molly Hale Infinity and her Inverse counterpart. She could no longer distinguish herself from all the people whose lives flashed before her eyes; could no longer tell where she ended and they began… all she was aware of was the colors and tenth-dimensional geometric shapes dancing and continuously changing in her vision, shapes she could somehow see in _every_ dimension both within and beyond spatial length, height, and width. She was suddenly, piercingly connected with her world's Molly Hale; the bond forged between them almost as strong as her connection with her Ash. This moment of meta-eternal clarity gave her the answers to every question she'd ever desired an answer to.

She saw the life she would build with her universe's Ash, she saw the godlike beings they would one day together become; and she saw things she couldn't even fathom even now in her state of absolute comprehension. She saw the enemies they'd face who'd have all their powers and none of their ties or restraints, and felt the same fear her future self would feel every time they made an appearance. She saw an arch nemesis in disguise revealing their traitorous true colors after years of trust, friendship, and romantic love. She saw so much, she saw a man in a golden one piece super-suit with a white mini cape organizing an Omni-Omniversal Double-O Championship Tournament, to help determine which of the three best Ash Ketchums in all the Omega Omnispheres was worthy to possess the mantel of Ash Ketchum IB, and which trainers were the Big Five of the entire Omni-Totality. This man's ZOF signature was literally blinding to her even in her current state, and she could no more look upon him than a mortal could look upon the sun for extended periods... so, she had no choice but to look elsewhere for the time being.

She saw herself and her Ash making out in midair while literally _floating_ a thousand feet above solid ground with the setting sun at their backs and bathing them both in a celestial glow. Finally, just when she thought she wouldn't be able to handle the inundation of information and flow of visions anymore; her moment of ultimate clarity ended just as the lightning storm passed her by. She sat there in pure shock, her body trying to get over the sheer rush it had just been subjected to and her mind blanked by the intensity of it all. It took her a small, relativistic eternity to regain her higher cognitive functions and for her heart to stop hammering in her chest, and by time she did she saw the Pokemon Center in near ruin. The foundational structure of the building itself was mostly intact, but every window was shattered and every door was blown off their hinges. The walls were charred and the power throughout the entire building was so overloaded that only the backup systems were unaffected, which was extremely fortunate because there could have been Pokemon in critical condition and on life support.

Remembering she hadn't been alone in the PC, Serena looked across from her seat towards where the mystery man had been sitting. She could see him sitting there with his head tilted in that curious Mew fashion, but apart from his intrigued expression; he didn't seem at all bothered by the fact that the most powerful force the world had ever seen just irradiated the entire building and possibly everyone in it.

"It's been a long time since I've been in the epicenter of a ZOF lightning storm like that; I have to admit that one was a whopper, even by my lofty standards. Then again, this is an IB we're talking about." He prattled onward, seemingly oblivious to the fact that Serena heard every word he spoke. "Um, excuse me but, who the hell are you?! I've been okay with not knowing your name until now; but something tells me you know more about what's going on than you've been telling anyone and I think we have a right to some answers." Serena gently but firmly questioned him.

"Who I am is no longer important, but for simplicity's sake you can call me… _TIB_." The man spoke the annoyingly vague acronym with an almost savage grin that unnerved her a little, as though it were the most important revelation in the world. If Serena had remembered her moment of infinite clarity she would've understood the significance of that title, but as it was she merely shook her head at his stubborn refusal to give her a real name when he already knew hers somehow. "Explanations will come later miss Yvonne; what you need to know is that your world has just been subjected to a great and powerful force, one which will bring changes you can't even begin to fathom. A new age of infinite power of impending, and you my child… will be right at the heart of everything. I mean that quite literally of course, because your presence in his new life will allow the new crowned Ash IB to fulfill his destiny; he can't do it without you or without Molly Hale. That is where you must go; find this girl… then rejoin Ash in the Alola Region."

Serena would have thought the man was simply messing with her if it wasn't for the serious, borderline menacing undertone lacing his words; and she resisted the urge to shudder uncontrollably as the weight of what was going to happen to her begun to sink in. "How… do you know all this?!" She breathlessly gasped emphatically, and the man gave her a look of such compassion she felt the compelling urge to blush. "I've always known. How I do or don't know anything is of little importance; for now, take these, and most of all… remember that while you may be destined to accomplish wonders beyond imagining you have a choice as to how you go about fulfilling said destiny. Life hands us all our own situations Serena, that part has always been an immutable fact of the Omni-Omniverse; but how we deal with them, _that_ is where the element of choice and of chance comes into play. Always remember this okay." TIB or whoever he was spoke with such crippling surety of the events to come that Serena couldn't bring herself to doubt him.

She nearly blanched with astonishment when he unlatched his Mega Ring from his left wrist and that other bracelet with the strange, rainbow gemstone attached to it from his right; then proceeded to hold them out to her as the pair of them stood to their feet. "Oh no, absolutely NOT! I CAN'T ACCEPT THIS!" Serena shouted with her arms flailing, not even aware that she was shouting or that time stood still around her and her new acquaintance; she was too busy trying to steady her rapidly palpitating heart. "Yes, you can, please Serena… take them. I don't need them right at this moment, and besides that; I'm quite capable of creating new ones."

"That Mega Ring there has a very special keystone with properties that will undoubtedly challenge what you already know about Mega Evolved Pokemon. The other bracelet is called a Z-Ring, and it has what is known as an Omnium Z Z-Crystal attached to it; you'll find out what that does when your journey brings you to the Alola Region." He insistently implored her, almost as though he couldn't get rid of the two extremely rare and powerful artifacts fast enough. Serena couldn't believe how lucky she was right now, even if she didn't have the slightest clue what he was rambling about, it wasn't every day one just up and offered you a mega ring and keystone free of charge. She wondered if that lightning blast had scrambled his brain a little, and she would have questioned his sanity if she didn't see the overwhelming clarity in his flawlessly blue eyes.

"Thank you so much; I promise I'll take really good care of these tools you've given me." She finally expressed her gratitude once the shocking surrealism of the situation dialed down a bit. He gave her a relieved smile, and then he was gone; literally, he was there one second, and a heartbeat later he just vanished. There wasn't even any smoke or crack of space-time displacement; he was just gone.

Serena just stared at the spot he'd been with slacken jaws, still reeling from what had just happened. "Who was he, and where did he come from?" She asked inevitably, wondering if she'd ever find the answers she was looking for. "Oh no, I hope Nurse Joy and the others Trainers and Pokemon are okay." Serena admitted, only just remembering she wasn't the only person in the building who had been hit by that energy wave. Deciding she should go and check on them as well as her Pokemon, she stood up to make sure Braixen, Pancham, and Sylveon were okay among other things.

She wouldn't be getting any sleep tonight, not after what happened just now; she was too wound up and worried about what was to come. Just what in the name of Arceus was the world coming too; she thought she'd seen the last of such craziness when Lysandre was beaten… but apparently, this was just the beginning. And apparently, Ash was at the heart of it all. That was another problem; she needed to find a way to reach him and maybe run a search on the name Molly Hale. For some odd reason, the name sounded familiar to her but no matter how much she pondered; where and when she heard it before continued to allude her.

She didn't want to entertain the idea that her life was now set in stone, but she remembered TIB's statement about how life was always handing people situations, that her ability to control how she dealt with the cards fate had dealt her was where her options lied. Maybe her future was glorious, wonderful, and fraught with danger and darkness all at the same time, but it was still her future and she alone would decide it. Right now, she just wanted to make sure everyone was okay, including Ash. So, the first thing she planned to do after checking on her Pokemon and everyone else in the building... was phone up Mrs. Ketchum and check in on her favorite Trainer and guy friend. She still remembered the number from when she first asked Ash to give it to her; wanting them to always keep in touch through his mother if need be.

Ash had been more than willing to oblige her, much to her joy and relief. With that in mind, Serena walked with a slight spring in her step despite the circumstances; opting to help with the inevitable cleanup and make sure everyone was okay. People likely would have considered her crazy for humming such a happy tune while she all but skipped towards her destination, but even with the thought of potentialities or whatever TIB had called them weighing her down she felt optimistic about her chances of coming out the other end of this with her sanity and her spirit intact.

XXXXX

Deep in the heart of the Kalos Region's many forests, there sprang a foreign root; legends in the future tell that these roots sprang up as an ecological disaster festering from the aftershock of Team Flare's reign of terror. Even vaguer references were made to the mythical being that tore the roots apart; the being known locally as the legendary Ash Greninja, but who would in time help father the legend of the new Ash Infinity and eventually Ash IB. It was on this day precisely 24 hours after Greninja's fabled Trainer left the Kalos Region that things would change for the frog-like Pokemon forever, and in ways bigger than he could have imagined.

' _Don't lose heart now Greninja; you've almost got it_.' Squishy, the ever present Zygarde Core spoke, cheering Greninja on from the sidelines alongside its bluer counterpart. Greninja sweatdropped at the duo pair simply sitting on a distant tree branch together instead of doing what they could to help him with this mess; while it was true he was only one who could see these blasted things, once exposed Squishy should have no trouble dispatching it. Yet for some odd reason, they seemed content to let Greninja do all the work; it was testing the ninja-frog's patience a little if he was being honest.

He concentrated his full power into a massive orange Water Shuriken; having taken on his special form during the battle with this root at some point and manifesting his ever-increasing strength to take it down as much as possible. As he focused on making the Shuriken bigger and bigger, he wondered to himself how long he'd be stuck on this clean-up duty; he wanted nothing more than to rejoin Ash as soon as this was done and travel to the ends of the world with him and beyond. To see all there was to see and do all there was to do, to battle with the absolute best Pokemon and Trainers in this world or any other; that was Greninja's long held dream. Ash had seen to a great deal of that already, and as his bond with his Trainer poured through his memories of all they accomplished together; a rush of power surged through him like never-before.

"Greeeninnnnnjaaaaaaaaaaa!" He gave an echoic, primeval roar of determination as the Shuriken spinning like a saw blade above him grew to twice the size of the one he hit Alain's Charizard with. He felt the strain of creating such a monstrosity hit him with crushing, meteoric impact and felt like he had taken on the weight of the sky itself. He shifted his stance to something more sturdy, and planted his feet to make the strain of maintaining this power a little easier. It shone a brilliant gold-white like the sun itself; and Greninja knew his special ninja star had reached its new peak level and prepared to launch it.

A massive storm instantly seeded overhead from out of nowhere, and the strangest looking lightning bolt either he or the two Zygarde Cores had ever seen struck him and his super-massive Water Shuriken just as he launched it towards the gnarled, flailing, twisted root. The gold-white of his Water Shuriken was imbued with a rainbow iridescence which caused it to ionize and shoot off sparks of electricity around the razor-honed edges. All of this took a split-second or two to occur, and was just in time for the root to catch the blast at its optimum caliber.

The explosion of lightning and chaos that followed could be seen from space; miles upon miles of trees were uprooted as burning, hurricane-force winds twisted the landscape and everything was blown asunder and enveloped in an orb of searing white light. Greninja and both Zygarde Cores were tossed about like ragdolls as the world around them spun out of control and all they could see was an endless vortex of electricity and mathematical equations floating around that made no sense... dividing by zero, Aleph: Infinity to the power of infinity and beyond, and even higher Aleph number sets that broke some self-imposed barrier of reality-breaking itself, and all sorts of other logical irrationalities. It was as though the very fabric of the world had been rewritten to fit these absurd mathematical formulas and equations, yet somehow also allowed for the old system to coexist with them.

Greninja went white with horror at the devastation he unleashed, yet as he looked in whatever direction the ground was at now; he noticed there wasn't a sign or trace of those menacing roots left in the whole of Kalos… though how he could see the world on that scale was beyond him that moment. He had only time enough to realize that his attack, while devastating, had completely neutralized a much bigger threat he'd thought would take years to completely dismantle, and that the world was somehow healing from the power of his Shuriken. He hit the newly refurbished ground with a whole new forest and landscape having sprung up in the wake of his last attack; the dull thud of him hitting the earth alongside both Zygarde Cores causing him to white out and his world to fade away into a realm comprised entire of lightning and incomprehensible energy.

XXXXX

"Entei?! But… how can you be here?! I thought I was awake now!" A 13-year-old girl with strawberry blonde hair and aquamarine eyes gasped in an awed, thunderstruck voice. She'd always been able to tell when she was dreaming somehow, she always knew without knowing how she knew it; it was a gut instinct of sorts, an intuition. There was always a sense of surrealism in even the most mundane, realistic things one did while asleep; if only one sensed it easily enough. Hers was the land where she could play with the legendary Entei whom she'd befriended; the land of sleep, dreams, and where all things were possible. It was meant to be the one place where she could let loose and not have a care in the world, her place of comfort. It was essentially, wholly hers; and she didn't have to share it with anyone save the majestic Legendary Entity towering before her.

But she wasn't sleeping right now, that much was clear based on the simple fact she was back where she'd been before she fell asleep; in her tent on Route 37's forest path and with no sense of surrealism in place. So how could he be here? Granted, his form was pale and translucent; as though he had trouble fully forming in the material world, but still he was there. Whether he was real or imagined didn't matter to Molly Hale anymore, all she wanted to do was hug him but something in his expression rooted her to the ground. His eyes were full of intense emotions, anger, love, hatred divine; something to that effect anyway. The way he was looking at her, she honestly questioned whether he recognized her or not; but when he finally spoke, his voice was quite steady and like she remembered.

"You are awake dear one, but the divide between the Omni-Omniversal sleep realm and the land of the woken has been temporarily bridged. I know not what has caused this Molly, only that it is a much more powerful reality-bender than the Unown are. Maybe even more powerful than the Creation Trio and the Original One itself; something big is coming your way Molly. I know not what for certain, but time travel and premonition have always been possible in dreams. I suggest you use whatever newfound gifts you may end up gaining to best prepare yourself. The time is fast approaching when I will be able to join you in any world we choose, be they dreamed up or part of the waking world. I'm looking forward to that." Entei admitted with a fond smile as his form grew steadily more tangible and a violent storm brewed overhead.

Having been out in the wilderness for days, Molly had heard no word of the storm and had nothing to go on other than the fact that the wild Pokemon all around them were heading for any meager shelter mother nature could provide. If only they knew there was no harbor from this particular storm; they might not have bothered trying to weather it, but as it was the Pokemon of the world were more attuned to nature than people were. And right now, something was throwing the balance of the world completely out of whack.

Molly had been journeying for over 3-years now, having caught every Pokemon from her dreamed up collection of long ago save for the Legendary Entei and an Unown. Now, it seemed she was to be reunited with her precious Entei in the real world, and it made her happier than she could describe. Her Teddiursa, Phanphy, Mantine, Kingdra, and Ampharos all sent their seals of approval; they'd all heard of the story of Molly and how lonely she had been as a kid. So, of course they were going to be happy for her being reunited with an old and very dear friend. They themselves knew they were real life versions of the Pokemon she'd dreamed of having as a child, and given the kind of trainer she was growing up to be; they couldn't have been prouder to have her.

Molly observed her precious Entei becoming fully corporeal in a dazed stupor just as lightning struck the ground between them and they both were thrown back by the sheer force of it. When the static shock finally stopped jolting her entire nervous system, Molly not only got her fully real Entei but could also see a strangely shaped Unown lying in the crater where the lightning had struck. It was unconscious, but as she ran up to check on it; she saw it was breathing fine and only seemed to have a bit of a nasty static shock situation going on. It wasn't shaped like any Unown she'd ever seen; instead it resembled the number eight, and was colored the same iridescent rainbow as the lightning bolt that seemingly conjured it.

It opened its eyes, which were basically spaces of white with black pupils in the holes of the black figure-eight it resembled. It locked gazes with her, and stared at her with an expression Molly knew only too well... it was a newborn, and had just imprinted on her. As it floated up to get a better look at her, Molly furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. Apparently, the Unown was content to lean sideways; so, the figure eight was standing horizontally instead of vertically, but whatever… if it was comfortable floating that way, that was fine with her.

Deciding this was as good a chance as any, Molly decided to scan it on her Pokedex; knowing it was effectively her Pokemon now since it had imprinted on her. She couldn't believe her luck, that lightning bolt had not only allowed Entei to return to her world free of charge... but gave her a newborn Unown as well. While she wasn't one to look a gift Arceus in the mouth; a part of her could just tell there would be a catch to this.

' _Unown, the Symbol Pokemon. Unown are said to have existed since ancient times. There are many in form and shape but little is known about this mysterious Pokémon. This Unown is a Psychic/Fairy/Dragon/Dark/Steel/Fire/Electric/Grass/Water/Ground/Rock/Ice/Fighting/Poison/Flying/Ghost/Bug/Normal/Shadow/? Type Pokemon all at once. It's ability is unknown, and its range of techniques is unprecedented; scans show it is capable of using every attack in the known Pokemon World and then some. It is in the shape of an infinity symbol, another unprecedented feature; oh, the Professor will definitely want to take a good look at this piece of work_.' Dexter's monotone voice catalogued the extremely unique individual as Molly's jaw dropped.

"It can do… ALL THAT?! Pardon my language, but HOLY SHIT!" She shouted expletively; no longer able to control her awe and childlike wonder at the thought of being able to capture such a rare specimen. Unown could achieve vast amounts of reality-warping power in sheer numbers, but nothing that allowed them to change the fundamental move sets and typing of Pokemon of any kind. Even Entei had only been able to fire an Ice-Type attack when his power was at its highest possible level, and only when Molly was channeling every bit of her imagination into feeding his power. But to cause this type of change in a single Unown, that power was unheard of, and she should know, she knew their capabilities better than almost anybody.

"This is amazing… you're amazing little guy. You need a nickname; how's about I call you… Loopy?" Molly suggested, and the Unown darted around in midair; whether out of excitement or discouragement, she didn't know for sure, but she soon felt its approval. Her other Pokemon were surprised; Molly didn't typically give nicknames to her team members like that… so clearly, they were all getting some too. Their Trainer was strongly against special treatment of any kind unless all Pokemon were given it equally.

"Molly. It is time for me to do what I wish I could've done years-ago; it is time for me to join you." Entei finally said the words Molly had been longing to hear for the past four-and-a-half years now. "Ooh, I love you Entei; I've been dreaming of this moment for years. I never imagined it would be possible though." Molly squealed with overexcitement; the Unown in her arms cooing at her delight as all of Molly's Pokemon beamed at her from in their respective Pokeballs.

Taking out her Pokedex once again, she pointed it at Entei to do a complete synopsis; knowing that the lightning bolt had sent her a massively altered Unown and almost hopeful it altered Entei's vital statistics compared to the norm for his species.

' _This Entei's typing is the same extensive multi-list as Unown. Its attacks consist of mainly Ice and Fire-Types, but with a few Dark and Normal-Type moves including Crunch, Sucker Punch, Darkest Lariat from the Alola Region's Litten evolutionary line, Extremespeed, Howl, and Swords Dance. He has all the high critical hit and guaranteed critical hit moves including Frost Breath and Storm Throw. His ability is somehow a duo combination of Anger Point and Magic Bounce. Warning, traces of altered and/or manipulated Mega Evolution energy detected within this Entei; as well as a Mikado Organ within his body that doesn't match up to any known records of Entei or the thus far studied anatomy of its species. Recommending a trip to the Pokemon Center and an examination by a professional Nurse or Doctor as well as the Pokemon Professors Elm and Oak to discern how this could have happened_ '. The monotone Dexter AI bleeped on in its robotic dialogue.

Molly was over the moon and back 99-thousand times over by this point, and she threw her arms around as much of Entei's body as she could manage, unable to hold in her intense euphoria at the prospect of getting to be with her strongest Pokemon in the real world. Her heart swelled with warmth for who or whatever higher force was responsible for this, and she found herself not caring if there was a catch. This was everything she'd ever dreamed of… well, almost everything. She couldn't believe how powerful he or this Unown being sandwiched gently in their embrace were; she knew Teddiursa packed a real wallop and with Belly Drum she could become scary strong… like, terrifyingly so. Her Kingdra was only weak to Fairy and Dragon-type moves; he could spam Dragon Dance and Protect combos to block incoming attacks, though the succession failure rate had to be considered.

"Oh Entei, Loopy, all of you… thank you so much; I don't know if I was a worthy Trainer of you before Entei and I don't know if I can be now… but I promise, I'll do my damndest to make our time together in this world the best it can possibly be. I know how you are about fulfilling my wishes, but right now all I want is for you and my other Pokemon to stay with me forever." Molly wasn't surprised to find she was crying tears of joy; her aquamarine eyes were shining with absolute bliss.

Entei gave her a fond smile; sure, she had made some mistakes last time and kidnapped an innocent man's mother… but she was a lonely little girl who had just lost her father and mother, then stumbled onto a reality-bending power that enabled her to gain back a semblance of family. Who wouldn't have done what she did when thrust in her position; what little girl or boy wouldn't want to have a family to call their own and love them? She hadn't exactly been in the best headspace when the Unown came into the picture; all she had wanted was a world where a girl didn't have to deal with the heartache of losing her family. She had gotten it for a time being, but that world hadn't been real; merely an illusion crafted by Molly's imperfect views and imagination.

"But wait, everything isn't going to be turning to crystal now that I have you and Loopy here; will it?" Molly suddenly spoke up, the implications of Entei's return hitting her hard. She'd worked hard with months of family counseling with her father and through her own determination to accept that change and tragedy happened… that the world she lived in may not have been perfect, but it was the best they could possibly have. She'd made peace with her mom's death and with Entei's own disappearance a long time ago. But now, here he was and while she was overjoyed to see him again… she didn't want to go back to a place where she bent the world to her every whim to get what she needed out of life.

"No dear one, I'm here with you for real. Whatever higher power is at work here allowed me to make you happy in this world; it defied the laws of reality itself. I can now stay with you forever, just like you wanted." Entei reassuringly spoke as Molly threw her arms around him again and nuzzled into his Mew-soft fur with closed eyes and a contented sigh; knowing nothing in the entire world could ruin this moment between them.

She didn't realize something else was happening until she'd already pulled away, and when she did she had to blink a couple of times to make sure she wasn't imagining things. There was a flickering ball of light ripping a hole of distortion in the air at Entei's back in front of her, and a figure standing silhouetted in its luminous radiance. Said figure was standing right in front of her before she could even blink, and she drew back with a start as Loopy's eyes widened and Entei got into a fighting stance… ready to defend Molly to the death if need be.

To their surprise however, the figure smiled kindly down at Molly from beneath his pullover mask, his iridescent golden eyes lighting up the world as she locked eyes with him… unable to bring herself to look away despite how unnerved she was by his sudden appearance. She could see Entei remaining tense and willing to protect her to his dying breath… but looking up at the man, she somehow felt completely self and felt a weird resonance with him. Her eyes tracked down his chiseled chin to his white one-piece suit and the alpha symbol on his chest plate; irradiated in the same colors as his eyes.

She would have reacted much more strongly, were it not for the overpowering surrealism of the situation like and yet not like walking in a dream; in his eyes, she saw eternity itself in its purest, most undeniable form. Whoever this man was, wherever he'd come from; she wondered why he'd chosen to show up here and now just to see her. Questions without answers bombarded her mind as the realness of the world caught back up to her and she recovered from the stupor this man's mere presence shocked her into.

"Who… are you?" she finally asked dazedly. "Molly… be careful; I don't like it, he's dangerous." Entei barked at her warningly as Loopy floated out of her arms and prepared itself to attack the intruder. The man chuckled and grinned at them in a not unfriendly manner, "I'm hurt Molly… truly; I didn't think you'd forget me. After all, it's only been a few years; well, relative to you and your timeline anyway." The man laughed as he pulled back his mask and revealed his face. Molly had to take a tentative step back to keep from falling over in shock at the face that greeted her.

"Ash? Is that… really you?" She asked in utmost awe and wonderment. The man standing before her was a version of Ash for sure, but everything about him seemed off in the most alien ways compared to the Ash Ketchum she knew. It had been almost five-years since she last saw him, and she would be lying if she said she hadn't grown to crush on him a little in the years that followed. He's who she had to thank for her big reality check; well, him, his friends, and his mother of course.

But Molly found herself thinking mainly of him from those times, and she'd kept tabs on all his recent journeys… wanting to call him up and maybe catch up a little. A part of her always felt like he'd resent her for taking his mom away; that he wouldn't want to hear from her despite the history they had together in their respective childhoods. But it seemed this alternate Ash or whatever didn't agree with her interpretation of his feelings towards her. She wanted to believe they could be friends again… Arceus knows they'd been best friends back in Pallet Town when she used to visit. That one summer where he'd been away at Professor Oak's summer camp had been the most boring summer she had in Pallet Town; she could remember how much she missed him that year… but only just. There was a three-year age gap between them after all and she had been worried he'd replace her with someone more his age.

"In a manner of speaking." The godly Ash said, interrupting her train of thoughts as Molly's eyes widened. "What does that mean?" She questioned. "Inquisitive, aren't we Molly Hale; hey Entei, take it easy over there. I am the Ash you guys knew in your universe… or at least, I was." He said with a maddening, shit-eating grin that had Molly questioning his sanity almost immediately. "You've come from the future." Entei deduced from his statement, and Ash clapped his hands jovially. "Indeed, I have… I wanted to give your Trainer something, and I was told to meet you at precisely this time and place Molly." Ash told them all with a toothy grin that was so uniquely Ash's that Molly, Entei, and her other Pokemon all immediately relaxed. Even if he was some epic, badass Ash from the future… it seemed the more times and people changed, the more they stayed the same.

"Told by who?" Molly found herself asking the obvious question before she could stop herself; wanting to know how the hell he was here, or why. "Told by you actually. About one-year from now when you reunite with my then present-day-self relative; you told me this was how you got your first Omnium Z-Crystal and Supreme Evolutionary Keystone. You'll find out what those two items are and what they do in the future, but for now, I want you to take them. Consider them a gift from me to you that is long overdue; I've missed you Molly. I hope you know, I never actually forgot any of my friends or previous travel companions." He explained to her as Molly felt her brain ready to explode from the sheer mechanics involved in traveling back in time to tell her all this. Beyond giving her some new items, she didn't know what purpose this time travelling situation served; it didn't seem like something worth going back in time for. If this future Ash knew they were going to reunite in a year; why not wait until then to give these items to her.

"Because there are trials and situations you'll face in that year-long time-frame; trials my past self will be unable to help you with since he has yet to realize your role in the days to come… also, frankly, I won't be at anywhere near the height of my power as an IBZOF Master by that point." He answered her unasked question, causing her to stare at him with slacken jaws as his whole demeanor changed from the goofy Ash Ketchum she knew as a kid to something… godlike. "You can call me the newest _Ash Ketchum Infinity and Beyond_ of _this_ Omni-Omniverse; or simply Ash IB or NAK IB for short.

This is a title I've worked long and hard to earn; considering I've had some pretty stiff competition over the years in the form of the original Ash Infinity and our Inverse Counterpart. I've also been called many other, countless names throughout the whole of Totality; from the cat in the hat, to the oncoming storm, all the way to 'hey you, get out of this Omega Omnisphere'. Though I think that last one is more a statement than a name personally." Ash declared with equal parts resolution and madness. Molly could only stand there and stare at him like he'd lost his mind, and given the kind of person he'd become; he probably did.

"Exactly… how far in the future did you come from?" Entei interjected suddenly, unable to reconcile this maddeningly brilliant Ash with the boy who had battled him on Molly's behalf to show her that the real world wasn't worth giving up on yet. "Oh… an endless set of endless eternities; give or take a few forever's." Ash airily estimated after doing a series of astronomical calculations on air with his fingers. Molly finally recovered from her shock well enough to give him a ' _are you serious'_ look.

"Oh yes… quite serious actually Hale; I've lived longer than any mortal sentient can ever have a frame of reference for. That wasn't a hyperbole before Molly; I've seen and done things you can't even imagine right now, and you and Serena are there with me every step of the way. I could completely spoil you and not have to worry about any Omni-Omniversal backlash, since this version of me has the full force of an IB Counterpart at his disposal, but where's the fun in that huh? All I can say is… be careful in the days ahead Molly, and whatever you do, always remember you have your Pokemon and you all can do anything when you work together. I have to go now though, I just wanted to give you these and wish you luck." Ash said as he swiftly held out his two hands before her, neatly gloved in the rubbery material of his super suit. She saw a ring with a rainbow-colored gemstone she didn't recognize, and a Mega Ring with a keystone the likes of which she'd never seen. To say she was floored by these proffered gifts was a vast understatement, but she wasn't going to look a gift Arceus in the mouth and tentatively accepted the two bracelets.

"Try em on." Ash encouraged her excitedly, and Molly couldn't help but smile at his eagerness. For all his boundless brilliance and wisdom that he'd gained from his impossible life span, he was still Ash at his core. She did as he asked and snapped the bracelets over each of her wrists with a series of clicks; the device coming partly undone and snapping neatly back into place over her small wrists. "A perfect fit, not that I was expecting anything less." He added in a melodic, serene tone; joy and positive energy emanating off him in waves so palpable that Molly had to bite her lip to refrain from moaning aloud in pure ecstasy just from basking in his presence.

"I guess it's time for me to head on back; I know I'm beyond causality and Omni-Omniversal backlash now… but that doesn't mean I should abuse my powers. Also, remember this Molly… the ZOF has its own set of counterbalances, checks, and antithetical presences. It has its own causality, and no matter how strong we are we're always going to attract situations and foes equal to what we're capable of. The time has come for you to sanctify these gifts Molly, because trust me, you're going to need them. I would say more, but for our glorious future together to occur… you guys must first survive the coming apocalypse. Ash, your Ash… he needs you Molly; more than either of you currently know. Without his ESIT soul mates, he'll never experience all that's coming and he'll never… become _ME_!"

"I can survive almost anything and everything, including the erasure of my past self… meta-omni paradoxes be damned, but I'd rather not have to secure my distant past self's future and fix myself as his one and only future self. I'm a potential future of him anyways; there's so many different paths he could take and most of them don't end with him becoming me… but I'm the most powerful and best version of him he can become, and he needs you guys to help him tap into that potential." Ash explained in a voice that was a symphony of every note of seriousness imaginable by sentient beings, and Molly shuddered at the absolute weight his words carried. If what he said was true, then she and her Pokemon were in way over their heads, and they were going to need some serious help to keep their heads above water.

"What can I do?" Molly couldn't help but ask, terrified of the future and the implications Ash's epic future-self made. He bent down to her eye level and put his hands on her shoulders, locking gazes with her and adopting a loving, comforting smile. "You can persevere; never give up until the end Molly. Where there's life there's always hope, and we're alive Molly Hale… you and me; we're so, so… ALIVE!" he proclaimed in that godly voice of his that spoke of absolute wisdom, like he knew what he was talking about. "I'll try, I promise I'll do my damndest." Molly finally assured him when the several minute silence between them elapsed.

"That's all I can ask, and don't fret too much about the future. Remember that it's not the destination that's important it's the journey getting there…" He paused to clap jovially before adding. "Alrighty then, time for me to go 'back to the future'. But not before I make some strange noises with my mouth that go along the lines of bingle bongle, dingle dangle, yickidoo, yickididaa, ping-pong lapitapitoota." He gave a maniacal, parting cackle that reminded Molly of a rabid Mightyena, and then vanished back inside the pulsing orb of light in a whirl of inhuman speeds.

Molly stared at the spot where he disappeared for several long moments following his departure; watching the hole in the air vanish in a wisp of smoke while his words and prophesies rendered her incoherent. By time she regained her higher cognitive functions, he had already been gone for five minutes. "Well, that was…" she started, unable to even think of any words to sum up what she had just experienced. She looked down at her wrists, the mega ring and the other bracelet gleaming on them and radiating the same energy as the future Ash and the lightning from before. The very same lightning that gave her Entei back and her very own Unown also resulted in the arrival of that insanely powerful, infinitely futuristic Ash; none of those situations were coincidental and she had the distinct impression they were all connected. "Just what have we gotten ourselves into this time Entei?"

XXXXX

That night, the comatose Ash was surprised by an unscheduled visitor in his hospital room, well after his condition had been stabilized and visiting hours had come and gone. The visitor was only there for less than a Planck instant, dashing in and out at ludicrous, meta-omnipotent velocities and leaving behind an Omnium Z crystal and Z-Ring, as well as a Supreme Evolution Keystone on a mega ring. They were halfway across the world so fast that it would have been instantaneous from even the most prodigious ZOF Prodigy's perspective. Unbeknownst to anyone but the person responsible, the figure had also placed power dampeners on Ash's ZOF-Master energy-levels; which were already way higher than expected. If things kept up at their current rate, the figure would be powerless to influence him in ways that fit their plans. So the power dampeners were put in place to keep his power in check; Appaneesty Infinity and Beyond forbid that the future Ash Ketchum IB ever grow strong enough to challenge his enemies before he was ready to handle that power.

Upon exiting their ludicrous speed, the same blonde haired, feminine man who'd visited Serena prior to the lightning strike, arrived at his home in the Kalos Region's Lumiose City. He'd chosen an inconspicuous house in the Rogue Avenue for his temporary base of operations, and upon entering his home brought up an image on his holo caster. The image of Ash Ketchum in his current state at the hospital appeared in a fully 3-dimensional projection; the hologram superimposing upon the sparse décor of the house itself.

"It has been but a few hours since lightning has struck, and subject is showing promising signs as an IBZOF Master. Changes have begun to take hold of him on a cellular and quintessentially metaphysical level. Subject's brain activity is off all charts and scales despite comatose state; doctors are at a loss to explain anything about this patient. His muscles are in a chronic and unexplained state of cellular regeneration."

"All of his cells are growing molecularly denser by the second and already approaching density of the average event horizon of a collapsing Omega Omnisphere. Ash Ketchum IB will be more durable than anything that exists in nature when he wakes up. His personal gravity is thus far unaffected, though ZOF charged anti-gravitons and tachyonic superluminal particles are beginning to manifest within subject's every single atom at the Master tier of power. His speed will be on par with some of the higher-ranking ZOF Masters and he will be able to control his personal gravity on a level equal to a ZOF Master version of Superman. As I have anticipated for these many years, an IB counterpart of Ash Ketchum has been selected by the ZOF and Ash Infinity's legacy has now become almost Omni-Omniversally constant."

"I will end this log by saying I am very much looking forward to seeing how this Ash compares to all his extra-Omniversal doppelgangers both infinitely removed and not. Sadly, there are forces of the ZOF's dark side who conspire to destroy him even now… when he is most vulnerable. Subject will require my own personal protection; especially since Thomas Infinity and Beyond vanished from the Omni-Omniverse during the ZIB crisis. Thankfully, I have managed to place dampeners on his ever-growing affinity with the source of our powers; so as to buy myself more time to school him in the ways of our people before his presence becomes a beacon to all of our race's worst monsters. This is Thilia IB… signing in... show me the future my modified Gideon AI." The ' _man_ ' catalogued the recent goings on in a voice far less masculine than the one ' _he'd_ ' used with Serena.

Through with her masquerade; Thilia casually shrugged out of her leather coat and her five-sizes too big Squirtleneck to reveal not a man, but a woman… and a gorgeous woman at that. She snapped her fez off her head and let her waist-length, caramel colored hair cascade down her sides and back, her blue eyes gaining a mischievous sparkle at having pulled off the gender-swap so fluently. Her undershirt was a simple white tank-top, and her loose-fitting jeans was all she kept on from her disguise… mainly because she had nothing on underneath and while she was prone to her nudist moments; she had bigger things to worry about than showing off her legs.

"The future is intact lady Thilia... Ash IB still defends his title at the Omni-Omniversal Pokemon tournament, and prevails over the forces that conspire against him. Everything is proceeding exactly as you have foreseen." Gideon reassured her as Thilia gave a warm close-eyed smile that would've had even the most composed men blushing. "That's awesome Gideon, if all goes to plan Ash will trust me almost as implicitly as he does his ESIT Bond Mates; maybe even more so. And that's good, he's going to need my help and expertise in the coming days. For right now though, we need to wait for mister sleepy head to wake up." Thilia giggled with a slightly sadistic and perverted chortle. She wasn't going to just use her powers to insinuate herself into Ash's personal ESIT signature; she wanted him to choose her of his own free will. It would be far more… meaningful that way. Until that time came however, she'd have to be patient… scarily patient in all honesty. "Time to begin phase two Gideon." "Right away mistress."

 _Author's Notes: And that's a wrap guys. Honestly, I know I said this was going to be strictly Amourshipping with Ash and Serena only and while Serena is his first and primary Soul Mate; this is an alternate Ash IB story and since I'm establishing Omni-Omniversal constants I need to consider the fact that both Ash Infinity and his Inverted counterpart's endgame relationships are/will be Molly Hale. Not to worry though peeps, this will still be an Amourshipping story; it'll just have some Ash and Molly on the side and make no mistake… there will be no others after this._

 _So, Ash/Serena/Molly IB for the win; it'll be a threesome for the ages… a Holy Trinity, or perhaps not so Holy lol. Anyways, don't try to change my mind on this change because I've already made up my mind; also, nothing has to happen right away guys. Molly's still only 13-years-old at this point so Ash will be limited in what he can do with her until he, Serena, and her are all of age. I also don't feel comfortable with the whole idea of writing lemons between people so young; so, that will come later guys… though frankly, I'm probably going to be implementing some pretty big time skips from time to time and will mostly focus on major aftermath events. Anyways, keep those reviews coming guys; and as always, I don't respond to flames so don't waste my time or yours with any. Don't like, then don't fucking read. Omniarch is signing off now._

 _Edited on December 9th, 2017 at 1:34 AM to fit recent changes I've made to the story-line and the characters themselves._


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